Canton

Place name, word name, French

"corner, district, township"

Canton Origin and Meaning

The name Canton is a boy's name meaning "corner, district, township".

More accessible than some of the more distant names in the atlas, Canton fits into the category of the no-nonsense, new-sounding boys' names many parents are looking at.

There are multiple places across the world called Canton, including a town in Ontario, Canada, a city district in Cardiff, Wales, a province in China (that's now typically called Guangdong), and a number of towns and cities in the US. As a word, a canton might refer to an administrative district; to a small community or clan; or to a rectangular emblem at the top left of a flag (i.e. the stars on the US flag). It likely originates from the Old French canton meaning "corner".

The name Canton in Pop Culture

• Canton administrative district in Switzerland
• Canton town in Ohio
• Canton Everett Delaware III character in season 6 of BBC's Doctor Who